NEWS

'Mad Dog' guilty of murders

Douglas Walker
The Star Press

HARTFORD CITY – Charles “Mad Dog” Whittington faces up to 170 years in prison after being found guilty Monday of killing a Hartford City father and daughter.

A Blackford Circuit Court jury deliberated for about an hour Monday afternoon before finding Whittington, of Portland, guilty of two counts of murder.

During the six-day trial, Blackford County Prosecutor Kevin Basey presented evidence that Whittington on Feb. 5 fatally shot Shane Williamson, 40, and his 14-year-old daughter, Kaitlin, at the near-downtown apartment building where they lived.

Whittington showed little reaction when Judge Dean Young read the guilty verdicts. The judge, noting the conclusion of “a very unsettling case for everyone,” set sentencing for Nov. 30.

The defendant – who observed his 60th birthday on Monday – is almost certainly destined to die in prison.

After returning the guilty verdicts, jurors were asked to determine whether Whittington had used a firearm in the commission of felonies.

That deliberation – also resulting in two guilty verdicts – took only a few minutes.

The murder convictions carry standard 55-year prison terms, and Basey said the firearms convictions could each lead to sentence enhancements of five to 20 years.

Public defender Chris Teagle tried to persuade jurors his client was not guilty by reason of insanity. Whittington, for his part, said he had no memory of the killings, and also had an evil alter ego named Elmer.

Two mental health professionals testified Monday they believe Whittington was legally sane at the time of the killings.

Testimony indicated Whittington was agitated because Shane Williamson, his acquaintance through a motorcycle club, had exchanged flirtatious online messages with the defendant’s ex-girlfriend.

Basey said after the trial that authorities could only speculate Kaitlin Williamson was killed because she could place Whittington at the scene of her father’s slaying.

The prosecutor said investigators remain uncertain which of the victims was shot first.

Shane Williamson was fatally wounded while sitting with Whittington in the cab of the victim’s pickup truck. His daughter was found shot to death in her bedroom.

Contact news reporter Douglas Walker at (765) 213-5851. You can also follow him on Twitter @DouglasWalkerSP.

Earlier trial coverage:

'Mad Dog's' ex-girlfriend testifies

Witness to slaying takes stand